


Zhitanaf (Vulcan Poetry Collection)

by Reyka_Sivao



Category: Star Trek
Genre: Academic, Analysis, F/F, F/M, M/M, Poetry, Pre-Reform Vulcan, Vulcan, Vulcan Biology, Vulcan Culture, Vulcan Kisses, Vulcan Language
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-16
Updated: 2019-08-16
Packaged: 2020-09-02 05:42:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20270896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reyka_Sivao/pseuds/Reyka_Sivao
Summary: Excerpts from a collection of poems in Modern Golic Vulcan, including translations, analysis, and historical notes.





	1. My Name Is Broken

"My Name Is Broken"

_Pushau ahm t’nash-veh_  
_Pushau ahm t’du _  
_Pushau shila-tellar   
__Pushau fna’ashau. _

_ Aitlu ta nam-tor natya _  
_Aitlu ta kup fun-tor_  
_Hi ki’teral goh etek   
_ _Heh kwon-sum teretuhr. _

My name is broken  
Your name is broken  
The social bonds are broken  
Broken because we love.

I wish that things were different   
I wish we could return  
But we have joined, only us   
And always will be together 

—T’Kora, about her lover T’Pinu, c. 2750 BCE (Federation Calendar)

In one of the earliest recorded indisputable examples of a same-sex bonded couple, T’Kora and T’Pinu publically declared their love for each other and were subsequently shunned from their community. Earlier historians have referred to them without the t’ prefix, as would have been customary at the time for women not bonded to a man, but as these are the names the women used for each other, it is now considered better practice to use these names. Indeed, this is at the heart of this particular poem from T’Kora’s collection: “My name is broken” refers to the loss of the bonded prefix.

[Audio Link YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sh1fpGWrfZw)


	2. Meditation Against Fear

"Meditation against fear"

_Tres-tor pthak _  
_Yon-tor pthak   
_ _Vashau pthak. _

_ Tres’uh pthak_  
_Yon’uh pthak  
_ _Vasha’uh pthak_

_ Teslau sochya _  
_Samuyau sochya  
_ _Torvau sochya._

_Dakh’uh pthak.   
_ _Narta’uh sochya. _  


Fear rips  
Fear burns  
Fear destroys

Rip fear  
Burn fear  
Destroy fear

Peace mends  
Peace cools  
Peace builds

Cast out fear  
Embrace peace 

\--Unattributed, c. 475 CE (Federation Calendar)

This anonymous poetic meditation is an excellent example of parallelism and repetition in Vulcan poetry. It is arranged in three sets of three lines all calling back to each other, followed by a coda which references one of Surak’s well-known quotes from the era.

Historically, this piece serves as an interesting bridge between pre- and post-Reform ideals. The form very much echoes classic pre-Reform style, but the content is solidly Reform-era.

[Audio Link YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9gTYsDqSp0)


End file.
